Lure
by AriannaK
Summary: A human servant has a difficult time accepting her new yautja owner, and her new status as a hunting lure. (WARNING: rated M for adult, sexual content, language, and violence.) Please R&R! COMPLETE
1. Chapter 1

Her wrists were bound tightly behind her back, and she stumbled as he shoved her down the metal ramp of the ship. A slowly brightening sky and green field lay a head of them. The tall grass was above her head, and she squirmed as the itchy strands drug across her face and bare legs. She could see a huge structure in the distance, like a stepped pyramid. The yautja prodded her forward, towards the ominous building. She swallowed thickly, afraid of whatever was to come.

This was to be her eighth owner. Amara had been raped by a younger male before, spoiled and coddled by others. She had been worked, wooed as a mate, beaten to an inch of her life, and spoiled-but her ownership always changed to new hands before long. She resisted and ran away from what she deemed as bad homes. She behaved her best at the good homes, but they still always found her inadequate in some way or another.

Her last owner had been kind to her, but was leaving on a long hunt that he said he may not return from. So her new owner was now in front of her, somewhere inside that ancient-looking dwelling. The yautja behind her was to deliver her to the new home. On the ship, she had asked him what her position would be-slave, pet, servant-but he wouldn't say. Finally out of the tall grass, she spotted fences, pens, and smaller buildings. It looked like a farm of sorts, so she assumed that she'd be a slave again.

Amara was dragging her feet as they neared the front of the house. The stones around the metal door looked like they had been painted in blood-some red symbols, some green. The yautja behind her gave her a shove. It was probably a light shove for a yautja, but for an ooman it was a very big push. With her arms tied and unable to help her, her face slammed into the door.

The male growled, not that it was her fault. Amara stumbled back, but as the door opened, she was roughly pushed forward again. There was no one in front of them, which gave Amara the chills. The door had automatically opened up to let them in. The yautja behind her untied her wrists.

She would have thought that she'd be introduced to her new owner, or even given a tour of the house. As she rubbed her sore wrists and gazed into the shadows though, she heard the delivery guy leave. Amara looked over her shoulder as the door closed, then stepped forward cautiously. She was alone in the dark, and it was making her nervous. Something about the house just didn't seem right.

Amara had lived on clan ships in space, with communal bathrooms and dining rooms. She had lived in the yautja equivalent of a mansion, the walls made out of trophy skulls. This house was different from the rest though, and not in a good way. The walls were plain, and the lighting was so dim that the corners of the room were filled with shadows and she couldn't see to the end of the hallway. The stone floor had scratches, gouges, and stains that made her feel uneasy.

"Hello?" Her small voice echoed around the empty space.

In response, she heard a scraping slide as something shuffled closer. She squinted, her eyes trying to adjust to the darkness, but could only make out a tall and foreboding figure. Something lingered in the hallway, watching her. Even without any visible details, she knew it had to be a yautja, and not another slave. Amara fidgeted with the fraying edges of her shorts as she stood in front of the door, an increasing sense of danger flooding in on her.

A deep and raspy voice spoke up, " _Pyode amedha, ye_."

Amara knew the dog-commands well: come, sit, stay, lay down. _Ye_ meant 'come'. She stepped forward cautiously, head down, as to make sure that she did not look like she was going to challenge him. Her blue eyes stared down at his big reptilian feet, afraid to look up. Some yautjas didn't mind if she looked them in the eyes because she was female-others, would pummel her for it.

" _Pyode amedha, zaakee._ " The dark form in the slowly turned like a rooted tree, and began to slowly disappear down the hallway.

She was pretty sure he meant for her to follow. She took an unsteady breath and walked after him. From behind, she was less shy about staring. His skin looked like an eerie pale gray, and his back was covered with deep lacerations. Around his shoulders was a thick, black fur stole.

They ascended stairs, then he shoved open a door with deep scratches down the metal. They looked like claw marks. He grunted, and she tentatively skirted in front of him to enter the room. It looked like a dungeon cell, with a single fur to sleep on and a hole to piss over. She glanced behind her to see him approaching her, and Amara quickly recoiled.

He was hideous. In the middle of the room where there was the most orange glow from the lights, she could finally make out his features. His eyes were a piercing gold, sunken in his skull and thickly outlined in black skin. Short, thin, black pikes lined his jaws and his cheeks. One of his tusks in his mouth was missing, and on the other side, his lower mandible was partially severed.

He held out a thin metal collar, and Amara steeled her nerves. She didn't budge as his black claws came uncomfortably close to her face, and clicked the plain collar around her throat. She stared at his clawed feet again as he produced another metal device, this time fastening it around her wrist. Her breathing kicked up a notch as he lingered. Amara slowly shuffled back a step. After a moment, his feet shifted and he left the room without a word.


	2. Chapter 2

A little while after he left, she tentatively tried to slide the door open. It didn't budge, but even if it hadn't been locked, she wouldn't have dared to step out of the room anyway. So, since she wasn't tired, she paced the room and poked around. There were no clothes for her, nothing but empty in-wall drawers and cabinets. Under the fur pelt, there was a series of markings carved into the floor though.

Amara knelt down to get a better look. It appeared to be a primitive yautja calendar, with slash marks through the days and years. Someone had apparently spent a lot of time locked in the tiny dungeon room. She suddenly jolted upright as she heard the door open, and dropped the pelt back on the floor. She whirled around then, backing away as the yautja entered.

As impossible as it was, he looked even scarier, coming to her dressed in armor and weapons, " _Pyode amedha, ye, zaakee_."

She didn't like being called 'soft meat' by a yautja that had probably tasted human flesh before, but as she moved towards him, he headed down the stairs and she followed. He led her out of the house. Though she knew that would mean she'd be put to work, she was already starting to feel claustrophobic inside. The bright sun and the soft breeze was bliss. However, he bypassed the animal pins and went around the back of the house.

There was a one-person spacecraft attached to the side of the building. All he had to do was tap a few buttons on his wrist controls, then it detached, hovered over the grass for a second, then landed. As he walked towards it, the whole front of the ship split in two-getting out of the way so that he had easy access to the chair in the middle. He didn't sit down though. He seemed to abruptly realize that it was meant for only one person.

Amara stood up straighter as he walked up to her. His gold eyes looked her up and down as though he was considering strapping her to the roof of the vehicle. Then, he moved away and went to the back of the spacecraft. He opened up the trunk, which was of considerable size. Amara sighed, hoping they weren't going anywhere far away.

As she leaned forward, ready to crawl into the trunk, he gave her a choice though. His English wasn't pronounced so great, but he rumbled, "L'app, or trun-k?"

He was seriously asking if she wanted to sit on his lap? She furled her brows as she stared at the ground, "I'll just...climb in the trunk."

He grunted and she lifted herself into the back of the ship. As she curled up, the metal hatch sealed itself and she was in the dark. She felt the ship hum and then lift off. She'd been caged before, had wandered around in a ship as big as a house, or even seated comfortably beside a yautja as they traveled. However, she had never been placed in the trunk before.

She felt the ship rumble then land only about ten minutes later. When the hatch opened, she didn't hesitate to crawl out and stretch. After that, they took a walk through the forest that now engulfed them. With the armor and weapons, it was obvious that he was going on a hunt. She huffed, complaining in her head, and wondered why she was being drug along though.

She got her answer soon enough. He turned around and gestured to her, " _Ab'we_..." then he gestured to himself, "... _Kv'var-de_."

 _Ab'we_ meant bait, and _Kv'var-de_ meant hunter. At that realization, Amara's mouth dropped. He intended to use her as a hunting lure, as bait for his prey. She'd never been bait before. That had to be worse than being a servant, worse than even being a slave.

He activated his cloaking device, and said, " _Y-i_." Stay.

Lures were disposable-used again and again until prey finally mangled and crippled them. If he was a good hunter, she would last longer. And she could defend herself, she might have had a chance at surviving. Though she'd lived with yautjas her whole life, she wasn't like them. She didn't know how to hunt or fight.

She'd been born on the yautja home planet to human parents, but that's all anyone would tell her. She grew up in a lab setting, as a science experiment on ooman behavior for ten years. She knew the yautja language, but wasn't fluent because of the use of translators on and off. And she didn't know how to fight, because no one had ever invested enough time to bother teaching her.

He hadn't even given her a weapon anyway. Amara looked over the area, not even knowing if he was still around or not. He could be in a tree already, silently climbing and stalking from above. The thought of him watching her had her hairs standing on end. The yautja was creepy, but she hoped at least he was a good hunter. With nothing else to do, Amara sat down in the leaf litter to wait for something to try and eat her.

She didn't think she'd recognize whatever creature came, but she did. It was brave, slowly walking from the brush to face her. Amara stilled, her guts twisting as she stared at its shiny black head. It was a xenomorph, a hard meat. It didn't launch at her immediately as though it suspected a trap.

It's caution was futile, as the yautja were smarter. Red laser lines appeared around them, cutting through the brush and creating a cage. Her new master dropped from the trees then, smartdisc in hand. The hard meat had nowhere to run. Sticky saliva dripped from its jaws as the xeno hissed at him.

Amara took the opportunity to jump up and hide behind the yautja while they were still sizing each other up. Maybe bring bait would be as easy as that. Sit, prey comes, yautja destroys prey. She hoped there would be no more participation needed on her side. With her bad luck though, she would be wrong.


	3. Chapter 3

There was a problem with her theory, specifically the **yautja destroys prey** part. The more she watched her new owner, the more injuries she realized he had. Besides the missing tusk and broken mandible, he was disfigured. He had thin scars on his back, but the ones on his right leg were deep, and stretched down the whole length of the appendage. Though he hid it well, his right leg made him limp.

Amara began to back away as they went at eachother. The yautja was slicing at the hard meat every opportunity he could, acid blood flinging through the air and corroding the ground at their feet. The hard meat was relentless. It whipped its tail around, striking significant blows. Its sharp claws reached out, taking swipes at him.

Though it's acid blood couldn't destroy his smartdisc, its jaws could. The weapon crumbled, and the pieces dropped to the ground, covered in thick saliva. He drew the combi-stick, and it quickly extended out to something as tall as he was. The xeno reacted quickly. Before he could take a shot at it, the hard meat pounced.

The combi stick dropped from his hand as the xenomorphs inner jaws went through his wrist. The shiny black beast went for his face next, but he was able to hold it off. She cringed as the hard meat's claws dug in anywhere there wasn't armor. The yautja managed to throw the xeno off from his body then, and stood defiantly. His mandibles splayed out, showing the slick pink insides of his mouth.

" _Ki'cti-pa_!" He barked.

It took her a second to realize that he was talking to her. Her blue eyes looked down at the combi stick then, her stomach twisting with fear. As he held back the hard meat, she ran and snatched the combi stick off the ground. The thing was lighter than it looked, but too long for her to be handling. Even though the yautja was growling at her, she dropped the weapon-there was just no way she was going to try and fight a xeno.

Amara wasn't exactly squeamish about blood, but when the bright substance began to ooze down the yautjas body, she wanted out of there. She sprinted away until she found the red laser wall. She walked the perimeter, looking for a tree to climb. She found something better-a reasonable gap under the laser fence.

The ground dipped some, making just enough space for her to slip under safely. Amara got down and held her breath. She carefully scooted through the space, the red line hovering just above her, and she prayed that she didn't lose a nipple. She made it out of the cage of lasers, and sat down to wait for him to finish his hunt. He didn't take long, but he sure seemed angry with her.

She thought he was going to walk right through the grid of of lasers at her, but they disappeared at the last second. A rich, thunderous growl erupted from his chest. Amara stiffened, then glanced behind her, just hoping that he was growling at another hard meat and not her. However, there wasn't any threats that she could see. That meant he was angry at her.

As he stormed closer, she scrambled to her feet and backed away. His mandibles spread as he stared down at her, then he smacked her with the extended combi stick. She stumbled back as he did it again, the metal hitting her knee. She turned her face away, submitting, but he whacked the pole of the weapon into her head. It didn't really hurt that much yet, but she wouldn't have been surprised if he dug the blade of it into her stomach next.

He grabbed her wrist and thrust the weapon into fingers, then said, " _Ki'cti-pa_." Combi-stick.

She stood there, holding the weapon and staring at his feet. Other yautjas had made her spar with them before, but it wasn't much of a training session for her. And it wasn't much challenge for them. Sparing was just a cover, a chance to beat her and have an excuse for the bruises. Even with him unarmed and her with the combi-stick, she was no match for him.

" _Ki'cti-pa_!" He rumbled, then snatched the combi-stick from her hand. " _Ki'cti-pa_." He handed it back then took it from her again.

When he gave her the weapon once more, she finally understood what he meant. She didn't know if he was an ass for only saying one word like she was a dog, or if he thought her grip on the language wasn't good enough for full sentences. Either way, she knew what he was trying to teach her now. When he'd said 'combi-stick', he'd wanted her to throw it to him. That way, he could keep his focus on the xeno.

He was tense, ready to rip the weapon from her hand again as he said, " _Ki'cti-pa_."

She quickly held out the combi-stick, and he took it, then collapsed it. Lesson learned. He still wasn't pleased with her though. She shrieked as he grabbed her by the hair and drug her back the way he'd came. When they stopped, he re-engaged the laser cage. It was just inches in front of her, and as she jerked away, she bumped into him.

He grumbled, and pointed to the lasers, " _Y-i ad'i_...other hon-ters."

 **Hunters** ; his English wasn't the best, but Amara nodded. He wanted her to stay close, because there were other hunters in the area, and she was prey to them. There was probably other xenomorphs out there too. She hadn't even thought about that when she ran off from the yautja. As much as she didn't like him, he was her only protection.

Seeming satisfied with their little chat, he chuffed and headed back to where he'd been fighting. Amara didn't hesitate to follow him. The dead hard meat was laying in a corroded patch of earth, acid blood still dripping from its wounds. He'd managed to stab it several times, then appeared to have broken its neck. He knelt beside the body and grabbed a dagger from his belt.


	4. Chapter 4

He began to carve into hard meat's body, peeling away the shiny black shell to get to its skull. Amara hated the monsters, even when they were dead. They dripped saliva, bled acid, and their insides were slimy. She had to look away before she threw up, but the sound of him gutting the hard meat still made her queasy. He finished in record time, apparently very familiar with dressing kills.

" _Kij-ij_."

Trophy...She didn't have time to register the word before he thrust the body parts he was keeping into her arms. He carried the skull though as they walked back to the ship. She held the items haphazardly in her arms, trying to keep them as far away from her body as she could. He'd decided to keep some fingers, teeth, the tail, and a few projections from its back. He'd likely make some cool weapons from them, but they were freaking her out.

He spoke up in English again, "L'app or trun-k?"

"Um..." She wasn't sure what to say.

She really didn't want to be stuck in the dark trunk next to his precious skull, afraid he might take hers if she scuffed it. She certainly didn't want to be laying down next to the other body parts in the trunk either. The idea of sitting on his lap though, simply scared the shit out of her. As they walked to the ship, the yautja kept glancing back at her. It was making her tense.

He was waiting for an answer. Or, he was paranoid that she'd break his trophies and would try to stab him with one of the severed fingers. She accidentally looked into his gold eyes a couple times, but he didn't show any anger towards her. Even still, she tried to keep her eyes on his feet-though, her eyes should have been on her own. Her foot caught a root and she stumbled.

She heard his menacing growl as she fought to keep her balance. She hugged the body parts to her chest, but one of the xenomorphs back spikes slipped from the pile. It hit the ground, but didn't break. Before she could pick it back up, the yautjas hand wrapped around her throat and squeezed. Her lungs burned but she didn't struggle.

After a moment, he let her go and rumbled, " _Gr'et lou-dte kalei_!"

He'd called her a 'clumsy child-maker'. Amara bowed her head, her heart pounding, and her body waiting more punishment. However, he placed the fallen xenomorph part back in her arms and continued walking. She sullenly followed. Amara was sure she'd be beaten for the mistake once they got back to the farm.

When they got to the ship, he put the trophies in the trunk. He pointed to them, "Har'd meet," then pointed to the empty space beside them, "sof't meet."

It appeared that she'd lost the option to ride up front with him. Her throat grew tight and her hands were getting clammy. She took his words as both a command and a threat. Amara carefully wedged herself into the back, and the hatch closed. She tried not to think about what was next to her in the dark.

With her main purpose fulfilled for the time being, he seemed uncertain about what to do with her. She grudgingly followed him around for a while, before he seemed to get an idea. The yautja opened a closet and shoved her closer. There were different containers on the shelves, and different objects hanging below. Unfortunately, not all of the alien tools were foreign to her.

She knew what he was going to say before he even spoke up, " _Wru'juh_." Clean.

She was hunting bait, and now the maid too. Amara didn't dare complain. She grabbed some of the containers from the shelf, started reading the labels, and the yautja pressed close to her back. He hovered over her shoulder, and her hands grew shaky. Amara choose one, grabbed the yautja equivalent of a mop, and got to work.

"Staay out of dun-ge-on, and bedrume. Don't go out'side."

She nodded.

He stood there, watching her for a moment before finally leaving. She felt a weight lifted off her shoulders without him around.

The stains in the stone floor were definitely blood, and she had a feeling that the yautja was behind the mess-as well as the deep scratches down her door. Amara scrubbed away the puddles and drag marks, and then went to the walls where there were dots from splattered blood. She began to wander, finding that most rooms were empty or locked.

She accidentally found his bedroom. At first, she thought that it was just a guest room, and went inside. When she started wiping down surfaces and cleaning the floor though, she noticed they the room seemed more used than the others. There were things laying out, a drink on the table, and open drawers. He'd told her not to go into his bedroom.

She turned and opened the door, only to find his pale grey skin standing in her way, "I'm sorry! I'm sorry! _El'l aba_!"

His booming growl sent her to his knees, and she was practically sobbing already. She didn't want to be beaten anymore. She wasn't strong like yautjas. It had been a simple mistake, but she'd been beaten and bloodied for far less. Her first owner had broken bones every time she smiled at him, before she realized that showing her teeth was taken as a threat.

The yautja in front of her merely snorted, then said, " _S'yuit-de_." Pathetic. He walked around her, and then added, "Neks time yuu come to my rume, yuu better bee on the bed."

Amara gulped, then fled from the room with the cleaning supplies in hand. She'd been raped once, but that was all it took for her to be terrified of it ever happening again. The yautja had said it as though it would be an alternative to punishment, when really it was the worst type of punishment. She avoided the hallway his room was in altogether, and continued cleaning. She couldn't think of a worse chore then scrubbing floors in the dark. Especially when there was probably a yautja looming around in the shadows watching her.


	5. Chapter 5

As the weeks passed, the yautja found more work for her to do. The tasks were way below her intelligence level, boring, and took forever. It started with pulling weeds in the fields. Then, he had her keep stock of household items. After that, he led her to the animal pens.

Amara had turned into a hunting lure, maid, and a pig-keeper. He told her that she'd be circulating the animals around the pens, giving them water, and cleaning up their crap. It didn't seem like the worst job in the world really. At least she was out of that depressing house. Before she could move the animals to the new grazing pen, he had one more thing to add.

He stepped closer to her, his mandibles twitching above her head, "Pik up all the fru'it that hitts the gro'un-d, and dis'card them."

He handed her a cloth bag, then turned and left. Everyday started to be the same. She got a piece of meat for breakfast, then tended to the garden. At lunch she was given a piece of meat and some water, then it was time to tend to the animals. Dinner was meat, and then she was to clean, do laundry, and stocking.

Lightly rolling hills covered in lush peach-colored grass lay ahead of her, with a few spindly trees here and there. The sun was a huge blazing orb just above the horizon, and every time she glanced up from her work it left orange spots in her vision. Zuri frowned down at the muddy ground within the animal pen, which was scattered with lumpy red fruit. With a sigh, she picked up the closest ones and tossed the fruit into a sac.

She wiped a bit of sweat off her forehead and then stared out at the horizon again. She blinked away the spots in her vision as she kicked a few of the fruits closer to the sac, not wanting to bend down and pick them up. As soon as she felt a huff of hot, sticky breath on the back of her leg she spun around. The animals in the pen had a bad habit of sticking their noses in crotch areas. Zuri brought up her leg to knee the nosy beast before it had the privilege.

She hit the animal in its face and it quickly recoiled from her. They were ugly things. The animals looked like fat pigs with the wrinkles of a Shar Pei, wide mouths like a toad, but with jagged mouthfuls of shark teeth. She didn't enjoy their company whatsoever, but it was her job to care for them until they were harvested. She picked up more fruit from the ground, threw it in the bag, then leaned against the fence.

"Get bak to wor-k, _pyode amedha_!"

She resisted the urge to roll her eyes, having heard that about a hundred times and she'd only been with him for a few weeks. There were more trees in the animal pen than outside, all of which dropped fruit constantly. The trees provided shade but if he didn't want the animals eating the fruit, he should have just removed the trees. The work was boring and stupid. She didn't see why she had to pick up the fruit, as the pigs liked eating them, and even she'd eaten the fruit before.

She went back to work until she saw him walk away, then her eyes wandered out into the distance again. Every once in a while she would catch a glimpse of these grey and black deer with flowing tails in the tall grass. She watched them leap about and graze, wishing she could get closer to them. They looked so beautiful and free. Amara longed for what they had.

When she was heading inside to wash up for diner, the yautja came walking towards her with an animal slung over his shoulder. She could tell he was struggling not to limp with the added weight on his bad leg. It was one of those grey and black deer. Her chest ached some. The yautjas destroyed everything she loved.

He dropped the body at her feet, the sound of it hitting the ground making her sick, and he said, "Pree'pare _amedha_."

He handed her a knife. Amara stared down at the beautiful dead deer, trying to think of a time she'd ever had to prepare her own food. "I don't know how."

He growled darkly, "Pree'pare _amedha_!"

She tried to hand back the knife, "I've never dressed a kill before."

He grabbed the weapon from her hand and pressed it to her neck, "If yuu don't pree'pare meet, then yuu don't eat."

Tears burned behind her eyes, and when he brought the knife away, she turned and ran into the house. She went to her cell, and collapsed onto the fur pelt. She heard his heavy footsteps climbing the stairs though. He wasn't about to let her sit though diner. She pressed her back into a corner as he eyed her.

" _Anoc_." Bathe.

She nodded, knowing very well that she needed a bath after caring for the animals.

Of course, the yautja had to follow her this time. She'd already taken her shirt off when the door slid open. Amara let out a squeak and hugged the fabric around her breasts.

She stood there, waiting for him to leave, just hoping he was grabbing something really quick. Instead, his gold eyes stayed on her. Her heart was pounding, unsure what to do. She didn't like him. He was creepy.

" _Anoc_." He said again.

She slowly moved towards the edge of the huge tub, almost as big as a pool, and swung one leg over the stone edge before he growled.

" _Flar-res_." he gestured to her, and she knew what he meant.

He wanted her to remove her clothes, even with him watching. She gulped, then dropped her top, and shimmied out of her shorts. The yautja grabbed them, and set them in a nearby machine to be cleaned. She quickly stepped into the lukewarm water. It smelled unpleasant, like chemicals.


	6. Chapter 6

He gestured to her body again, " _Wru'juh_."

She rubbed herself down with the yautja equivalent of soap, though it didn't foam up at all. His eyes never left her, and he kept inching towards the tub. She had to wonder why he would supervise her bath now, why he wanted to make sure she was clean. When he started to remove his own clothes, she just about had a heart attack. She moved away and tried to climb out.

Since he was near the steps and there was a rim to the tub, she was frantically flopping like a fish to try and escape.

There was no ounce of waver in his voice, " _ye_." Come.

Chest heaving, she sank back into the water.

" _Wru'juh_."

She sighed, "I am clean."

She tensely gripped the side of the bath a he wadded over to her. His ugly face pressed close, that severed mandible twitching with the rest of them. Though he didn't move very fast, she hadn't seen it coming. His hands gripped her shoulders and pushed her down, under the water. She kicked and thrashed at him, sucking in water with her panic.

After only a second, he lifted her up and set her on the side of the bath. She coughed up water and whimpered, "You tried to drown me..."

" _M-di_ , wash all of yuu."

 _M-di_ meant no. Her lungs and throat were still burning though. Amara didn't care what excuse he gave; he almost drowned her. Shaking slightly, she got to her feet. She could feel his gold eyes on her as she quickly dried and dressed.

Before she could leave, he said, " _Wru'juh_ howse."

 **House** , she wanted to correct his pronunciation, but she felt exhausted already. He wasn't even going to let her have a break. Amara wandered around the house, dusting and re-dusting. She'd lived in houses were dusting, mopping, and stocking was never necessary. On this farm though, it seemed he didn't like technology-not even artificial light. Eventually, she stood at the top of the stairs, hesitant to go back down in the dark basement.

Of course, the yautja would appear right behind her, "Get bak to wor-k, _pyode amedha_."

She cringed at his deep, raspy voice but said, "But I can't see down there. Why don't you turn up the lights?"

He gave her a light shove, "Save en'er'gy."

She wobbled on the top step, then braced her hands on the walls. She didn't understand how she was supposed to clean when she couldn't even see well enough to tell if anything was dirty. She slowly descended the stairs, and headed to the left. The right hallway led to the dungeon. She'd heard strange noises from that direction, so even if she was allowed, she wouldn't have gone over there.

With her stomach rumbling, she began to wipe down anything she ran into in the dark. The orange glow of the lights flickered every so often, making her feel uneasy. Already tense, as soon as she saw something scurrying around on the floor, she bolted. She clipped the corner as she turned, then tried to scramble up the steps in a hurry. She was probably the only human alive that could trip going **up** the steps.

She let out a pitiful moan as her nose hit the stone steps. Amara held her face as it started to bleed, and almost ran into the yautja in the hallway. She tried to turn her head away to hide her embarrassment. Even in the dark, she felt it was stupid that she tripped. However, Yautjas sense of smell alone though would tell him that she was bleeding.

He grabbed her shirt in his fist and yanked her to face him, " _Ou din erde_?"

"It was my fault. There was something down there, and I couldn't see, so I tripped."

He slowly let her go, growling with annoyance no doubt. She went to the bathroom to wash off the blood. Amara was glad to find that her nose wasn't broke and the bleeding stopped after a while. Her stomach was complaining, but she got back to her chores. Problem was, she still had to check the kitchens stock and clean in there too.

Before she even got to the kitchen, she could smell the hot, seasoned meat. The yautja stood at the counter, leaning over a full plate of food. She tried to act like she didn't notice. Amara opened the cabinets, and took note of which spices, drinks, and other foods were running low. After that, she cleaned and organized, before finally staring at his empty plate.

There were a few scraps still left on it. Her mouth watered longingly. However, even the thought of stealing food from him scared her. The yautja would likely notice the smallest crumb missing, or smell it on her breath. Amara cleaned his plate, then got the hell out of the kitchen. She went to bed hungry.

In the morning, she jerked awake when she heard the door, and ended up bashing the back of her head against the stone wall behind her. She winced and held her head as he loomed above her. Since there were no windows and the lights were always kept dim, she never knew what time it was. She eyed the yautja, finding that he was dressed in armor. Apparently, it was hunting time.

She stood and followed him out to the ship. There was light at the horizon, but the sun wasn't even up yet. Thigh he offered his lap again, she prefered the trunk. She yawned as she climbed inside. For the short ride there, she fell back asleep.

His claws digging into her side was her wake-up call. Amara squirmed and shrieked before bouncing out of the trunk. He grunted at her and she looked down at the scratches. They weren't deep, and her squirming probably made them worse. Still, he didn't have to be so damn rude.

They walked for a time, her eyelids closing on and off, before he finally said, " _Ab'we, y-i_."

Amara practically collapsed, feeling overly hungry, thirsty, and tired.


	7. Chapter 7

It was probably the stupidest thing she could do, but she fell asleep. The sun had risen, and for hours there was no sign of the yautja or any hard meats. She tossed and turned when she felt bugs on her, and lifted her head occasionally if she heard something, but she was really only half-awake. The ground was softer then the stone floor in her cell, and she hadn't been sleeping well since she arrived. It was peaceful, until an animal finally showed up.

Something was breathing over her, a hot breath sticking to her skin. Amara rolled over to see a huge ostrich-like animal hovering over her. She immediately curled into a tight ball, and held her breath. The yautja must have fallen asleep too. The bird nibbled at her hair, and she started cussing out the yautja in her head.

She was waiting for teeth to sink into her, but instead, she felt a burst of warmth flow over her back. The liquid smelled sour. Amara spazed out, realizing that it was peeing on her. She rose to her feet and tried to slap the bird. All the managed to do was get her fingers bitten.

It cocked its head, eyeing her. It had an ostrich body, but had curly grey fur like a goddamn poodle. And in its beak, was tiny needle teeth. Its leg rose up as she backed away, and it's nails nearly ripped off her shirt in the process of knocking her to the ground. Then, it straddled her and started humping.

She couldn't see any aroused anatomy yet, and she didn't want to. What sort of creature pissed on something before it humped it? Only porcupines and this alien apparently. Amara struggled to get out from under it, but one of its feet stepped on her hand, and its beak was latched onto the back of her shirt. She tried to lay flat on her stomach, but the huge bird went to his knees to keep its contact with her. Now, she was feeling a hard erection rubbing her raw through her shorts.

The yautja was probably watching from the trees, chortling at the scene demonically. Her hand really hurt though, the bird was crushing her ribs, and her shirt was about to be ripped clean off. Amara started screaming when the animal suddenly stilled, then dropped to the ground beside her. Breathing heavy, she stood and took in the sight of the dead animal. It had a metal stake through its head.

She turned around and jumped in surprise, as the yautja was suddenly right behind her.

Her eyes started to water and her hands balled into fists, "Took you long enough!"

The yautja took a bold step forward and Amara quickly bowed her head. Even as scared and angry as she was, she knew better than to yell at a yautja. She'd been punched before and it had knocked her out for days. One whole side of her face was swollen and purple. This yautja didn't strike her though.

"Not supp'owsed to kill." He gestured to the bird, "Not car'ni'vour. Not att-ack me."

She kept her voice quiet, trying not to be combative, but she said, "Well, it did attack **me**."

One of his black claws reached out to poke through a tear in her shirt, " _Se-i_ , so I kill."

"Oh."

He moved away from her to kneel beside the dead bird. He looked over its body, drew out a dagger, then began to make shallow cuts. She knew that the yautjas took their honor seriously, and that he had to make up for killing an animal that he really wasn't supposed to. She would have been touched that he'd risk her honor to save her from being molested, but she knew better. She didn't think that yautjas were even capable of emotions like humans.

The only reason he must have saved her, was because he had spent money on her. She didn't know how much her former owner had sold her for, but she knew she had to have at least some value. She watched the yautja peel off the animal's skin as sacrificial notion. It was a gruesome, awful sight. He didn't tear into it though; his movements were fluid and meticulous.

Somehow, he made it seem like an art form. She had always thought of the whole yautja race as murderers that didn't value life. However, seeing the energy he put into preparing the body made her reconsider that a little. He began to ramble, the sentences pronounced too quickly for her to understand. It was a funeral almost, though a disgusting one.

It reminded her of mummification. When she died, she didn't want to have her brain scrambled, her organs put in jars, and be wrapped up so she still looked juicy hundreds of years later. She also didn't want her skin peeled off and her body hung upside down in a tree for maggots to eat away at her flesh. Then again, she didn't exactly like the idea of putting makeup on a dead body and having everyone walking around the casket either. The yautjas view of life and death was different, but she couldn't say they didn't value life.

They celebrated the strength of life by going after worthy prey. They celebrated raw desperation and the urge to survive, by letting prey that had bested them keep living. They only killed what was honorable to kill. Humans killed harmless animals for sport-shy deer, unsuspecting birds, dumb fish, and made trophies out of them. If a yautja ever saw the trophies that humans kept, they'd probably think it was barbaric.

When he was finally finished, he started walking away, "Bait, co'me."

It appeared that his name for her had switched from Soft Meat, to Bait. She couldn't decide which one was worse. Amara followed him back to the tiny spacecraft, and climbed in the trunk. She didn't think there was anything worse than an animal wanting to eat her, until one had tried to hump her, so she was thankful to be going back to the farm. Demeaning chores and cleaning suddenly didn't sound too bad.


	8. Chapter 8

Since they had gone hunting instead, she got to skip her morning chores-gardening. He led her to the animal pins then, apparently still not about to feed her anything. Amara started picking up the fruit that had fallen in the empty pen. As soon as the yautja left, she ran and washed some fruits in clean water. She glanced around suspiciously, making sure she wasn't being watched, then began to stuff her face.

They were so tender and juicy, like plums. She had to keep wiping her chin and licking her lips as she ate. The little fruits tasted so incredibly sweet, like nothing she'd ever had on Earth. It was almost too much sugar, but she was so hungry. When she'd had her fill, she left the rest of the fruit in the ground and let the pigs in.

They were hungry too, having eaten most of the plants in their other pen, as well as the condensed pellet food blocks. The fruit was so delicious, she didn't see why the yautja didn't want the pigs to have any. They wrestled one another and ate up the fruit like it was candy. She used a stick to keep their wide jaws and sharp teeth away from her as she gave them fresh water. They were a bit hyper, probably from the sugar in the fruit, but they didn't give her much trouble when she laid out their food.

After that, she bathed without any interruptions, and got to cleaning and stocking. He had her check stock everyday, which she felt was trivial. How much healing cream, spices, or soap could two people go through in a day? Amara started to pay less attention to the work, feeling that he was just trying to keep her busy. Her chores didn't hold any surprises, until she went to the basement.

She noticed immediately that the lights were brighter. She smirked, knowing they'd been turned up just for her. Maybe if she tripped in the upstairs hallways he'd turn those lights up too, and then she wouldn't feel like she was living in a haunted house. As she got to the bottom of the stairs though, she dismissed the idea. In the light, she could see the blood stains, cracked stone, claw marks, and broken decor better.

She got done with her list of duties faster than usual. Since she wasn't allowed diner, and had been woken up early, she just decided to go to bed. Amara didn't want him finding her something else to do, so she snuck around and tried to avoid running into him. She got to her room safely. He could have been in any of the numerous shadows, but either way, he didn't stop her.

Amara adjusted the fur pelt, making sure it covered the carved calendar that had kept track of the years someone had spent in the cell. It was creepy. Plus, she didn't want to think about how long she could possibly be stuck in the dingy room. The longest she'd stayed with one owner though was only two years. She layed down on the pelt, wiggling her toes in the empty air. She hoped that her next owner gave her a bed.

The room was warm at least, but the floor was hard, and she didn't even have another pelt to use as a pillow. She flopped onto her stomach, then turned to her side. She tried her other side, then her back again. If she couldn't get some proper sleep, she was going to end up nodding off on another hunt, or even during her chores. She stretched and scratched trying to relax, but then ended up sliding her hand under her shirt.

She gently ran her thumb over her nipple, enjoying the tingling sensations that produced. As her nipple hardened, she switched and caressed the other one, making it stiffen as well. She rolled one of her nipples between her fingers, feeling her sex slowly moisten. It begged for attention. She hoped that maybe if she reached an orgasm that it would relax her enough to put herself to sleep.

Amara closed her eyes as she slipped her hand into her shorts. Her fingers were met with heat and slick, tender flesh. She rubbed gently at first, and swirled a finger around her clit. It swelled with her growing arousal. She bit her lower lip to contain a moan.

She played her fingers through her moist folds, before pressing a digit into her passage. Her back arched, trying to push her finger further inside. She added a second finger, then began to work them in and out of her. Pleasure filled her body, and she came close to a peak when the door slid open. The yautja came strolling in, not even pausing at the doorway, and came right up to her.

Amara jerked upright, quickly hiding her hands behind her back, and breathed, "The hell...?"

He cocked his head at her, as his hand touched the thick metal collar around her neck, "In'di'cated in-crease temp, heart rate, an'd breathing...came to chek."

She straightened as his hand moved from the collar, to her arm. He grabbed pulled her arm from behind her back, then started at her fingers. There was still a slickness to her digits, so she knew a yautja would be able to smell it. She grit her teeth, angry that she couldn't sleep nor even find relief with this yautja around. His gold eyes flickered to her face, and Amara shamefully kept her gaze on the wall behind him.

"Yuu in heat." He grumbled.

She tried to pull her hand away, but his grip only tightened, "Humans don't do that."

"Fer'tile...cann smell i-t."

She shook her head.

His body pressed closer, backing her against the wall, "Lett me fi'x."

Hearing that, she just about died. Her first thought was that he'd neuter her-he seemed tense, like he was ready to carve into her with his claws and tear out her reproductive organs right then and there. However, she knew from past experience, that was not what he meant. He didn't purr; there was no musk or heat. Still, she knew he meant sex.


	9. Chapter 9

Her heart was in a panic. She didn't need 250lbs of yautja pinning her down and ramming his cock into her cervix. She'd already been there, done that. It wouldn't solve any of her problems. If anything, she'd be sore afterwards and still unable to sleep.

She turned her face away, "No...Please, no."

She was surprised to find it was as easy as that-his hand immediately released her arm, and he took a step away. She ran her other hand through her blond hair nervously. He lingered for a moment, his eyes still on her, but then he eventually turned and left. She let out a distraught sigh, then sat down onto the pelt, resting her back against the wall. She was onto to plan #2 of her mission to get done rest: counting sheep.

In the morning, Amara watched the grey and black deer prance around in the tall grass as she tended to the garden. Her stomach growled, and she considered eating whatever weird vegetables were growing before her. They went into the food made for the wrinkly pigs, so she assumed they were safe to eat. She glanced around first, looking for the yautja. Then, she grabbed one and walked to the spicket.

After washing off the fruit and glancing around again, she took a bite. It looked like an eggplant, but felt like chalk with a rubbery outside. The taste wasn't so bad though, kinda like a raw potato. She grimaced at every single bite, the texture putting her off. She was hungry though, and downed the whole thing.

She buried the stem in the garden, hiding evidence. Before she could get back to work though, her stomach started to gurgle and ache. Amara ran inside, unsure if she was going to have diarrhea or puke. She ran up the stairs to her cell and stuck her fingers down her throat. She hurled over the toilet, instantly feeling better.

The metal collar and bracelet were relaying her health to his wrist controls, so as soon as she wiped her mouth, he was at the door.

" _El'l aba_." She quickly apologized.

" _Fet'ki._ " He growled. Explain.

"I ate one of the vegetables in the garden."

In an instant, he attacked. She didn't even have gone to flinch. He charged at her, grabbing her throat, and threw her up against the wall. Her head spun and his bubbling growl seemed to penetrate down to her bones. Bits of the stone wall crumbled from the impact, the pieces falling to their feet.

"Yuu steal food!" He snarled.

Her chest was absolutely heaving with ragged breaths, but she was unharmed. She'd expected broken bones, but it seemed that even though he'd thrown her up against the wall, he'd held his arm behind her to cushion the blow. The stone bricks behind her were cracked, yet she was only a bit shaken up. He had immense power, and control. He could have easily killed her, yet chose not to.

"Some ed'i'ble. Some ar poi'son." He rumbled, then let her go. His arm was bleeding, dripping fluorescent green.

She stared up at him with wide eyes, "I'm sorry."

He huffed and said, "Get bak to wor-k."

When it came time for her cleaning chores, she usually avoided the _kehrite_ if he was in there. This time though, she wandered into the back of the room, and began scrubbing the floor. He was on the other side of the long room, with a combi-stick in hand. He practiced with a hologram target that moved and reacted to his movements. He was slashing and stabbing at it with savage precision.

Amara payed little attention to him, until the room grew eerily quiet. She looked up from the splattered green stain on the floor, hoping that he wasn't staring at her. He had the hologram turned off, but still had the combi-stick. His movements were slow now, like he was practicing capoeira or something. She'd seen yautjas aggressively going through combat moves before, but not this.

He was doing slow, meditative movements, testing his balance and refining his coordination. It looked like some sort of entrancing dance, except for the moments when his weak leg made him falter. She wondered why he didn't just heal his leg. Was there some reason it couldn't be fixed? Amara was under the impression that yautja technology could do just about anything except bring things back from the dead.

He turned to her suddenly, "Spar?"

She'd sparred with yautjas before, and even when they weren't out to just beat her up, she still ended up with welts and bruises. "No thanks."

"Cle-an or spar."

She hadn't even realized that she'd stopped scrubbing, and promptly returned to her chores. He still had a combi stick in his hand that was about six foot long. She didn't want him to decide to use it on her. By the time she'd cleaned everything on that side of the *kehrite* he was still in there, training. She picked up her stuff, and headed out to clean other rooms.

However, she stopped in the doorway and quietly asked, "Are you going to go hunt for food tonight?"

His gold eyes met hers, and he slowly let his stance relax, "Will yuu pre'pare meel?"

"Yea."

Without another word, he collapsed the combi stick and left the room. Amara stayed and cleaned, dreading that he would come back with a dead animal, and yet hoping for it as well. Pretty soon, if she didn't eat, she wasn't going to have any energy for chores. Her former owners, even the nice ones, had called her fat though. Amara supposed that if he didn't bring back food, she'd just look at it as an opportunity to shed a few flabby pounds.

The yautja tracked her down and presented a small dead animal to her. It looked like a fluffy, plump ferret. He held it by its rear legs, and let it dangle lifelessly in front of her. Amara tentatively took the animal, holding it far away from her, and walked to the kitchen. The yautja opened a drawer and then handed her a small knife to use.


	10. Chapter 10

She let out a hesitant breath, then began making cuts. If it was up to her, she would have probably started out by cleaving its head and arms off first. She'd never seen a yautja do that before though, and he'd only provided the knife, so she made do. Amara started by removing its fur. He kept making annoyed clicks and huffs beside her, so she knew she was doing poorly.

He made skinning something look easy. Amara was butchering the tiny thing, not that its pelt was of any value. Before she could get all of the skin and fur off, the knife accidentally punctured too deep into its abdomen. Thick, dark green stuff started oozing from the incision, and it smelled horrendous. The yautja grumbled, then snatched the animal off the table.

Amara panicked, worried that she'd lost her chance at getting a meal, "No, I can just wash it off!"

" _M-di_ , soiled. Me'at for an'i'mals now."

He left, and Amara looked down at the knife in her hand. It was a tiny thing, easily concealed. Few of her previous owners had let her around weapons, and less than that had let her touch them. None of her previous owners had left her alone with a weapon before. Too many yautjas heard stories about human slaves attacking their owners she supposed.

The thought of attacking any yautja had Amara feeling sickly nervous. She placed the knife on the table where it was clearly visible, and moved away from it. About half an hour later, he returned with another animal. This one looked like the combination of a beaver and a sloth. He dropped it into the table, then handed her the knife again.

Amara sighed, worried that it was going to take all night for her to finally make diner, when the yautja stepped behind her. He placed his fingers over her hand, directing the knife. His presence so close to her was unnerving, but he mumbled directions and guided her hands. No one had ever really taken the time to teach her in the same way that he was though. She'd expected to cut off chunks and just cook and eat them, but he seemed to have other plans.

The yautja showed her how to shred the meat, making it like pulled pork. He even insisted that she smell every spice container and pick out what she liked. Amara would have found his actions endearing, but she had her suspicions. Her new chore would probably be serving as a cook next. She knew that he was showing her how to make diner properly because she'd be making his diner for the rest of her days.

Still, she couldn't help but feel grateful. The meat tasted incredible, and she hadn't been made to go hunt it down herself. Amara cleaned up the blood and mess in the kitchen, then got back on schedule. Since cooking had taken up so much time, she was behind on the rest of her chores. She already had to take a nap in the middle of the yautja day since they were longer than what humans were made for, so it was difficult for her to stay up later to finish cleaning.

She was yawning about every five seconds, and her eyelids felt impossibly heavy. Her feet hurt, so she sat down on the steps, leaning up to keep scrubbing them. The stains were slowly fading every time she cleaned. She sighed as she remembered that he'd gotten green blood in her cell too now, and she'd have to clean that up as well. Her movements slowed until she shut her eyes for a moment and ended up falling asleep on the steps.

She woke up feeling incredibly well rested, and she stretched, enjoying the cushioned surface and soft furs she was on. Amara's eyes shot open as she realized they she was on a bed. She remembered falling asleep on the steps, so the yautja must have carried her and put here there. They meant, he had touched her. And if she was in a bed, it must have been his bed.

She lunged off the bed in a panic, and scanned the room for the yautja. The bedroom didn't look like his though, and he was nowhere to be seen. She relaxed a little once she was that there was clothes on the dresser. They were too small to fit him, so he must have laid them out for her. Her top had been ripped by that amorous bird thing, so she eagerly tried on the new clothes.

She liked the top. It was a soft leather and it covered her boobs as well as her pudgy belly. The bottom though, was a short skirt and yautjas didn't waste their time with underwear. It was revealing, and she worried that it would allow him easy access to her. Not to mention, those stupid alien pigs with the shark teeth would probably try to goose her.

Her shorts were tattered though, and the fabric rubbed, giving her heat rashes when she was sweating. She put the skirt on just as the door opened. The damn metal collar probably alerted him when she was awake too. The fact that he wasn't dressed in armor for a hunt gave her little comfort. She'd fallen asleep during work, and knew that he'd apply an appropriate punishment.

As he approached, she backed away until her ass bumped into the bed. He pressed closer, hunching slightly as his one tusk scrunched up slightly and his mandibles lifted. Yautjas didn't have noses, but they must have had some sort of olfactory pits, because they had an incredible sense of smell. He was scenting the air around her, something they did to test if a female was fertile and ready to be mated.

Since that ostrich-looking animal had tried to rut with her, and the yautja was suddenly so interested, Amara assumed that she was putting off an attracting scent of some kind. It had happened many times before. Her first owner had been young, and unprepared for her to enter a type of heat that yautja females went into. He'd been lured by it stronger than anticipated, and he'd ended up raping her.


	11. Chapter 11

Amara leaned back, bracing her hands on the bed. His skin was so grey, and with the mangled leg and disfigured face, he looked like some sort of undead monster to her. He seemed to like whatever he smelled, and his eyes began to peruse up and down her body intently. Her heart was already in a panic. He acted differently from the rest, but his intentions were clear.

There was no heat radiating out from his body that indicated arousal. There was no heady musk provoke her scenes. He didn't purr. Though she hated herself for it, Amara had always found the purring as a turn on. It was stimulating yet relaxing. It was her only weakness for these giant reptilian aliens.

When yautjas purred at her, she wanted to melt in their arms. This yautja though, didn't purr at all. He just crowded her, eyes intense, and body ridged. A bulging vein on his neck gave away his racing pulse, the only indication of his arousal. If she didn't know better, she'd have thought he was going to kill her.

"Clo'thes." He rumbled.

Though she knew what he meant, she said, "Thanks, yes, they fit..."

"Clo'thes off."

She relented, and pulled her top over her head. Then, she began to slide down the skirt. He was hovering so close to her, her knuckles brushed his skin as she pushed down the fabric. She gulped, her throat tight and her chest still heaving. Though a layer of clothes would do nothing to deter him, she felt more vulnerable now without them.

He wanted to mate her, and since she'd disobeyed, he could now use sex as a justified punishment. His hands reached out and grabbed her hips, squeezing until she let out a small peep and squirmed. When she'd been raped before, the harder she'd struggled, the deeper his teeth had sunk in. The more she'd cried, the harder he had thrusted.

"Bed."

Amara remained compliant, her breaths becoming shallow as she turned and crawled onto the bed. She didn't want to look at him, so she remained on her knees with her back to him and her elbows resting on the bed. As she felt the bed tip with added weight, her fingers dug into the furs and she hugged one to her chest. She jerked as she felt him touch her back. He lightly drug his teeth across her skin, breathing heavily.

Fear flooded into her veins like a disease, "I'm sorry. I won't fall asleep while cleaning ever again, I promise...Just pick a different punishment, please."

After a moment, he grunted, "Pun-ish'ment?"

"You can use me as target practice or something, just not this...If it's my smell getting to you, I can bathe more." She began to ramble, "One of my previous owners locked me in a room until my smell dissipated. One of them rented a slave just to deal with me while the smell was strongest. Maybe you could just send me away for a little while or something?"

" _M-di_. Not send yuu aw'ay. Yuu are mine...fo'r now."

He climbed out of the bed, then she heard the door slide open. Amara turned to see him exit the room, leaving her there, naked. She collapsed into her side with a relieved breath. He'd said **for now** as though he might sell her though. She got dressed, and when she saw him again, he was wearing his armor for a hunt.

She followed him to the back of the house, to the spaceship. Amara went to the back and waited for him to open the trunk. He placed a few weapons behind the seat though, and sat down. She stood there for a moment, then tried to open the hatch to the back. It didn't budge.

"L'app." He demanded.

"...Not the trunk?"

He rumbled.

Amara walked to the front, and stood in front of him, feeling awkward. The yautja just watched her patiently, seeming amused. She took a deep breath, then turned around and backed up. His legs were too tall, so she had to sort of hop up into his lap. He wrapped one arm around her waist to hold her still, then the ship began to lift off.

Amara wandered around curiously, trusting that the yautja was following and watching her. She found the alien plants and mushrooms equally enthralling. It wasn't long before a predator caught up to her though. She stilled as she heard a noise. Then, she saw movement.

It looked like a yautjas hunting hound. It was a big one too, with bulky muscle and long bone spikes growing from its back and on its head. It growled, and Amara stared at its lipless mouth and all those teeth. Now, she almost hoped that its intention was just to hump her. Instead, the hound launched at her.

Amara ran as fast as she could, but the hound kept right on her heels. When she tried to turn, she heard its teeth snap down on empty air. She scrambled the other way, heart pumping and adrenaline rushing through her. When she came across a shallow stream, she tried to jump across it.

She didn't make it. She hit the bank on the other side, then fell back into the cold water and mud. The hound was right on her, one of its heavy paws landing on shoulder. She kicked and thrashed, feeling its hot breath on her skin. Her strength was not match for it, but when she slung mud at its face, it backed off.

She clamored up the bank, completely soaked and covered with mud, and kept running. The hound followed, occasionally speeding up to herd her in a particular direction. When Amara saw a thick branch in her path, she hauled it into the air and whirled around. The hound came at her, and she swung the branch like a bat. The wood splintered over the animals head.

It growled, seeming unfazed, and crept closer for another attack when she heard a yautja bark out a command. She scanned the trees, and found a strange yautja walking towards her. He had a whip curled up at his hip, a plasma castor on his shoulder, and a shuriken in one hand. Amara paled. Her owner had said that there were other predators on the reserve, and this yautja had his eyes set on her.


	12. Chapter 12

She couldn't outrun the yautja, or the hunting hound. She had no weapons, and no skill. Her owner was nowhere to be seen, so she was on her own. Amara subtly started to back away, but then decided to sit down instead, to try and show that she wasn't a threat. If prey was armed, they were fair game no matter what. If they were unarmed, they were still game if they were aggressive.

Yautjas had ways of pushing prey to be aggressive though, so just to make sure, she said in yautja, " _I'm not prey_."

" _A runaway_." He accused.

" _M-di_." Amara started to look around for her owner, begging that he would find her soon.

The yautja continued to walk up to her, but put away the shuriken. He grabbed her arm and hauled her upright, his grip firm enough to leave a bruise. He grabbed her face then, and Amara's natural reaction was to try and pull away. His black claws dug in, and she let out a whine. He held her still, turning her face then looking her over. He was looking for a mark of ownership.

" _Who gave you the relay collar_?" He asked, still holding her face between his hands like he might decide to crush it.

" _I don't know my owners name_."

" _Do you have a male or female owner?_ " He was almost speaking too fast for her to understand.

" _...Male_."

" _Where is he_?" he squeezed her head tighter.

" _I don't know! He was hunting around here somewhere_!"

The stranger let out a low growl, but looked up to the trees, not at her. Her head spun as he suddenly released her and drew out the shuriken again. She thought she was dead for sure, but then he threw it up into the trees. It sliced through the branches with ease, clearing away enough foliage that Amara could see a movement up in the trees. It was her master.

He'd just thrown a shuriken at her owner. It returned to the strangers hand and he got ready to throw it again. Since his position had been compromised, he climbed down to face the stranger. Her owner drew his wrist blades, and growled. As soon as she started to back away, they advanced on one another.

Amara could only assume that the yautja stranger was a badblood. The only reason he hadn't killed her right away was because he had other sick plans for her, whether it be slavery or rape. Her owner had come at the right time, but the stranger was a better fighter. Green blood was flying through the air, flinging off the blades of their weapons. The stranger seemed to know that his opponent had a weak leg.

The stranger forced get owner to have to keep moving his feet, to keep straining his leg. Her owner was good, even with his bad leg, but the stranger was better. Finally, her owner ended up on his back, and he let the weapon drop from his hand. He didn't turn his face to the side, which was customary when one lost. It was a sign of submission, and her owner refused to grant it.

The stranger leaned over him, a deep bubbling growl demanding that he submit. He was going to kill him. Amara wanted to run, but knew that he'd find her eventually. She had to help. Amara looked around, quickly finding a big rock, and she chucked it at the stranger.

Her aim could not have been more perfect. The rock hit the stranger's mask, leaving a scuff mark. He turned towards his his body growing tense. He abandoned her owner to walk towards her as he drew out his whip. She'd never done anything bold like that before, and now she didn't know what to do.

Her owner heaved himself to his feet, and said something too fast for her to comprehend. It made the stranger stop his advance though. He made a chuff, a dismissive noise, and turned back to her owner. She looked around for another rock as the gap between them closed. When she lifted up a rock though, she hesitated.

Her owner shook the stranger's shoulder, in a friendly greeting. Then, they put their weapons away, and pointed to each others wounds. When they both walked towards her, she still had her eyes set on the stranger. Her face still burned from his claws digging in. They were apparently old friends, but Amara still didn't like him.

"Dr-op rok." Her owner demanded.

Amara quickly tossed it, and it rolled away.

"Old hun'ting part-ner." Her owner shook the stranger's shoulder again.

Amara nodded, realizing that she was in no danger now, but she still couldn't relax. She could have been killed. He'd allowed her to be chased and frightened to death before he'd come to rescue her. She'd even tried to help him by throwing a rock at a yautja, something that was sure to get her mangled, but he didn't seem to care. Amara crossed her arms in front of her chest, but patiently waited while they conversed.

Finally, he led her to the ship. She was eager to her home and take a bath. The mud was drying on her skin and making her itchy. Amara walked to the back, waiting for him to open the trunk. Instead, he grabbed her around the waist and lifted her up like luggage.

"I'm all dirty! Can't I just lay in the trunk?" She begged.

" _M-di_."

He set her down on his lap, but when he tried to put a hand around her waist, she pushed him away, "You were going to let me get killed..."

" _M-di_. Yuu were ne'ver in any dan-ger. I fol'low. I wat'ch."

She wanted to believe him, but, "That hunting hound was dangerous."

" _Sei-i_ , but well train'ed."

When they landed, he put his arm around her waist again. She went to push him away, but the ship rocked and she would have hit her face on the glass if he hadn't been holding on to her. So she let him lift her off his lap and set her feet in the grass. She headed right for the bath, and so did he.


	13. Chapter 13

She'd hoped that her scent had finally died down and he'd abandoned his intention to mate with her. Instead, he got scary intense again. His hands went to untie his loincloth, but as she stripped and dropped her clothes into the washer, he completely stopped moving. She could feel his eyes burning into her as she climbed down into the bath. She settled into the water, glad now that he kept the house so dark and probably couldn't see her body in the tub.

Amara turned her back to him as she began to work the mud out of her hair. He was completely silent as he approached her, but she felt the water ripple. He didn't touch her, so she tried to ignore him. When she tried to move to the side and grab a bar of soap though, he lifted his arm to the rim of the tub, blocking her. She inched to the other side, and his other arm blocked her escape.

Her heart was beginning to pound frantically. He made her feel trapped. He was right behind her, with muscles like stone, and she could feel him breathing on the back of her neck. She felt like he was going to snap at any moment and hurt her. Amara slowly placed her hands in front of her on the rim of the tub, intent on climbing out.

She began to lift herself up, when an abrupt hum made her hesitate. He was starting to purr finally, but he sort of sounded like a broken chainsaw. Even though it sounded choppy, it still had a calming effect though. Amara slowly turned around to face him, her hips grazing him as she did. His purr deepened as he looked down at her, then it stopped as quickly as it had started.

He suddenly grabbed her hips and lifted her up against him. Amara gasped at feeling a soft bulge between her legs, and without his purring, her fear escalated. She started to struggle, but yautjas were used to that from females that liked to test their strength. Males had to prove that they could restrain females without harming them, and he did just that with her.

He spun her around and scooped up her arms, holding them behind her back. Then, he lifted her up enough to bend her over the edge of the tub. Her face was pressed against the stone floor, and she let out a frightened whine. He rubbed his hips against her, his member quickly surging with blood. His heady musk felt thick in her lungs.

"What did I do wrong?"

His movements came to a halt, "No'thing... are good _aseigan_."

"Then let me go." She pleaded.

He hesitated, but released her arms and took a step back, "Yuu don't wish to mate?"

"No."

"Wiy?"

She shrugged, "I just don't want to."

He let out a booming growl, startling her, "I ca-n smell your arou'sal. Wiy do yuu deny me?"

"I don't...I don't know...I can't just have sex with someone I don't even have a connection with. There has to be a relationship."

"Re'la'tion-ship?" He butchered the pronunciation.

"Yea...you know...there has to be some dating involved."

"Dating?"

She felt like she was talking to a caveman, "Yautjas assess partners as appropriate mates or not, and so do humans. There are steps involved."

"Courting rit'uals?"

"Yes! Like courting rituals." She tried to slip away from him, but he blocked her with his body.

"Tel'l me ooman courting rituals."

She couldn't but back the annoyance in her voice, "Well, first of all, you'd have to be human." She wasn't raised on Earth and didn't exactly know what was customary, she just knew what she felt and wanted.

She saw his hands clench into fists and regretted her words. Before she could correct herself though, he huffed, and climbed out of the bath. She shouldn't have said it. Amara had no chance of being with a human anyway. If she did want a partner, it would have to be yautja.

Still, she worried though that yautjas were incapable of feelings that would support a long-term relationship. She'd been told that humans didn't always stay married for the rest of their life, but at least that was usually the goal. A yautjas goal was to have strong offspring, and it was rare that they sustained any long-term relationship. She wanted a lifemate, or no partner at all. Amara didn't want to be a throw-away fucktoy as well as a slave.

She quickly finished scrubbing herself clean, feeling bad for some reason that she'd turned him down. Amara sighed, feeling somewhat conflicted, and lifted herself out of the tub. She didn't have time to think about if she'd hurt a monsters feeling or not. Instead of getting right back to work though, she started looking for him. She even dared to knock on his bedroom door.

She couldn't find him. She figured that he'd gone hunting for her diner, so she went to the front door. She wasn't sure if it would be locked or not, but she was able to casually nudge it open. She usually waited for his approval to go outside, but it was around the time that she'd usually go to the animal pans. Amara hung out in the doorway for a minute to see if he'd show up and scold her.

When he didn't come, she timidly stepped outside. The sun was warm on her face as she went to the animal pens. The wrinkly pigs were more rowdy than usual, growling and wrestling with each other. Amara went into the new pen, walking around the fallen fruit. So much fruit fell, the pigs could never eat it all and they were starting to rot on the ground. She figured that it was good fertilizer.

Amara laid down fresh food, which would distract the ugly beasts while she filled their water. Then, she went to the gate. They were starting to recognize her as the one that brought food, and they were all bustling behind the gate. One was even starting to dig under the metal, overly eager to get into the new pen. They had an evil, sharp mouth full teeth, but they usually didn't try to bite.


	14. Chapter 14

With as rambunctious as they already were, she didn't want to keep them waiting. Amara unlatched the heavy metal gate and swung it open. They herded into the new pen, and she squeezed herself against the fencing so that they didn't run her over. They viciously attacked the food, even dumping over the trough. Amara had never seen them so riled up. She hurried to give them fresh water and get out of there.

As the hose was filling up their big pool of water, one of the beasts clipped her leg as it ran past. She went off balance and fell right on her back in the grass. Multi colored stars briefly flooded her vision, but she pushed herself to her feet. Amara jogged to the gate, but one of the pigs grabbed a hold of her skirt before she reached it. As she pulled away, the fabric went to shreds in its teeth.

It growled darkly, and she slowly backed away, bumping into another one of the wrinkly alien pigs. It nipped at her calf before she sprung away. She ran for the gate then, her heart starting to pound. One of the bigger pigs stood in her way, huffing and snorting. She bent down and picked up a stick.

Usually, a good whack had them recoiling from her. When the pig charged, she danced out of the way and gave it a warning slap on its side as it passed her. As it turned around, it lost balance and fell for seemingly no reason at all. Something was wrong with the animals, though she didn't know what. She bolted for the fence, ready to climb over it.

One of the wrinkly pigs beat her to it. Her fingers touched the metal of the fence when she felt a sticky breath on her skin. There was a burning sensation before her body registered the pain, and it jolted up her leg with a crippling intensity. Warm fluid gushed from the wound as she dropped to the ground. The pigs went into a frenzy at the sight of blood.

All she could hear was the rushing pound of her heart in her ears as they began to maul each other. Dark purple blood started to speckle their bodies. Several of them mobbed around her, and she desperately began to scream and thrash at them. Their short claws dug into her as they trampled her, wrestling each other on top of her body. There was several seconds when one was on her chest, its weight crushing down and preventing her from breathing.

Everything was happening too fast. One of the pigs wide jaws clamped down on her side, and she let out a ragged scream. It quickly released her, but then another grabbed her leg and began to drag her forward. She managed to sit up despite the pain, and jammed her fingers towards its eyes. It let out an unnatural sounding yelp, and Amara whimpered as she tried to stand.

One of the frenzied beasts ran right into her injured leg though, sending her spinning back to the ground. When she tried to lift herself up, a heavy paw bashed into her temple. She moaned with the added pain, and dug her fingers into the grass to try and drag herself away from the crazed animals. Short, jagged teeth sank into her thigh. She tried to kick the pig off of her, but she felt like blood loss was already making her weak.

Her body seemed lethargic from their unrelenting attacks, and her voice cracked as she cried out. Her vision blurred for a moment, but then she saw a grey-skinned yautja run and leap over the fence. He let out a thunderous roar, but the pigs were not deterred. As the yautja approached her, a pig ran up to him with its teeth bared. His foot lifted and he delivered a powerful kick to the animals face.

With a sickening snap, the pig's neck broke and the animal collapsed. The other pigs began to mob the dead one, tearing off chunks of flesh with their wide jaws. By then, the adrenaline had her feeling almost numb. One of the pigs was still latched onto her arm, but she hardly felt it. Her head lolled to the side as the yautja stepped over her to grab the pig.

His black claws dug into the animal's back, and it let go of her arm. He brought the animal down onto his knee, cracking its spine. His low growl vibrated her chest as he spun around and slammed his fist down onto an attacking pig. There was a disgusting thud as his fist connected with its flesh. He fought them away from her, but the pigs just kept on coming.

Their teeth latched onto his tough hide, pulling at him from all directions. They snarled and growled, and roared with defiance. The pigs had to weigh three hundred pounds, but he could lift them above his head and throw them. They charged at him like short, ugly bulls, but he could stop them dead with one punch. It was obvious that he was going to win the fight, but then his weak leg gave out.

She swallowed thickly, watching the yautja drop to his knees. Her arms and legs were mangled, but she arched her back and tried to stand. The yautja was down, but he was not out. He pinned one of the pigs to the ground and slashed open its midsection with his claws. Another pig reared up and tried to jump up on his back.

He flung the animal off him, then strangled it. A few pigs were left. She strained her neck to see they it was digging near the fence. Another was heaving in the corner, and throwing up red juices. The yautja was left covered with their deep purple blood, his chest rapidly expanding with heaving breaths. With a growl, he stood and walked over to her.

He glared down at her, but scooped her up into his arms. She didn't have the strength to hold up her head as he carried her into the house. As he stepped into the medical room, his bad leg faltered. He dropped to his knees for a second, but quickly pushed himself upright, and laid her into a cold metal table. Pain was flooding in on her.


	15. Chapter 15

She passed out, but it must have only been for a minute, because the yautja was still applying enzyme cream to her wounds when she woke up. Her eyes fluttered open at him as she took a deep breath. His claws scraped against the inside of the jar, then applied some of the opaque cream to her thigh. She felt lightheaded as she tried to sit up, so she didn't protest when he firmly shoved her back down on the table. She swallowed, her throat feeling sore and her mouth dry.

Before she knew it, he'd disappeared from the room. She gave it a few minutes, expecting him to return, but he didn't. Worrying about the wounds he'd sustained, Amara pushed herself up from the table. Her head spun, but she jumped down and started to look for him. She began to hear violent banging and growls that led her to his bedroom.

The door had been left open, so she peeked inside. The bed was turned on its side, and there were various containers on the ground, their contents spilled and splattered everywhere. He was facing the wall, all of the cabinets and drawers in front of him open. His body was tense, and his wounds were still bleeding a little. He was not in a good mood, so she timidly started to back away.

He swiveled around to face her, pinning her to the wall with his intense glair, "Yuu were sup'posed to keep stock, yet there is no more enzyme cream!"

"I'm sorry!"

He gestured down the length of his body, "This is all yuur fault! Yuu did not pik up the fallen fruit!"

She started to back away, but he followed, "I'm sorry! I didn't know the fruit would make them go crazy! You should have told me!"

He growled, stepping out of the room as she backed down the hallway, "Stupid ooman! Fruit rots, tur'n to al'co'hol! Animals eat and be-come aggressive!"

Her knees started to bend as she cowered, but he gripped her throat, "I shouldn't have to ex'plain to yuu! Yuu are a slave! Yuu obey! Yuu clean! Yuu are to serve me, and die if told to!"

She went to her tiptoes as he began to lift her off the ground, "Those ani'mals were an investment, were my only source of income! Ea'ch one was fifty times yuur worth!" He shoved her back as he released her throat, and she stumbled and fell on her ass.

Warm tears ran down her cheeks, and she sniveled, "Why didn't you just let them kill me then?"

He growled, the thundering noise stealing away her breath, but be didn't give an answer. She watched him walk down the hall, his limping more noticeable than ever. He hadn't known that they were out of the enzyme cream, but he could have healed how own wounds before hers. He could have just let her be ripped apart by the pigs too, seeing as it was her own fault. He wasn't bound by any code of honor to keep her alive.

Amara followed him to the kitchen, where he poured himself a drink, and then eased himself into a chair. Yautjas rarely showed pain, but she could tell that he was straining. It was her fault that he'd gotten hurt, and that he didn't have any medicine for his wounds either. If she'd just have listened, and paid more attention to her chores, none of this would have happened. She crept forward nervously.

"I am sorry. I didn't mean for this to happen."

"Leave! Go clean some'thing!" He snarled.

She nodded solemnly, but found a clean sponge, and went to the sink. When she glanced up, his eyes were boring into her with loathing. All of the water, even the tap water and bath water, contained an antimicrobial. She got the sponge damp, then started to approach him. His mandibles widened with anger.

Usually, an aggressive display like that would have had her running. However, he hadn't done anything to hurt her yet, and had even saved her life. Her hand was shaking though as she pressed it to his shoulder. A low growl pulsed through the air, but she didn't retract her hand. She tenderly began to wipe the blood off of him.

He eventually stopped the threatening displays, but he still wasn't happy. He kept rumbling in yautja and jerking away from her. She tried to be gentle, but he was actually being quite a baby about it. Her lips were slowly curving into a smile. When he was clean of blood, she patched him up with the liquid bandages.

It was a thick orange substance. She smeared it over his open wounds and it dried to a rubbery consistency. It would allow the wounds to breathe, while keeping them dry and clean. After she'd put the supplies away, she dared to touch one of his scars on his neck that led down his back. His mandibles twitched, the tusks at the end clinking together.

"Why can't you heal your leg?"

To her surprise, he actually gave her an answer-most yautjas liked to ignore her questions like they were annoying. "On group hun't, I made a mis-take, and end'an'gered others as well. I will not heal my dis'figurement un-til I redeem myself on an'other clan hunt."

"How long has it been?"

He huffed, "Eight cycles."

"You've limped around looking like that for **eight years**?"

He chuffed, then asked, "I'm ug'ly to yuu?"

Amara's face turned red, "I didn't mean it like that."

"Then wiy am I not a suit-able mate?"

She couldn't believe that they were back on that topic, "I already told you...and I don't even know your name."

"Know'ing name is first step in court'ing?"

"Yea...yea, I guess it is."

"Getk'ka."

"I'm Amara."

He let out a barely audible trill, then asked, "What is nex't s'tep?"

She didn't exactly like where this was going, but she said, "I guess, sharing a meal would be next."

When he started to get up, but she bravely pushed at his shoulders, "I can make dinner."

He grumbled in disagreement, but relaxed back in the chair. She went to the freezer and picked out some hunks of leftover meat. She prepared it the way he'd taught her, taking the time to shred and season the meat properly. There was no rush-she knew that once they were done eating, he was going to ask her what the next step was and she really didn't have an answer.


	16. Chapter 16

She sat beside him at the counter, keeping her elbows off the table, and eating slowly. Her eyes wandered to the left, taking in the hulking grey form beside her. She took a bite, then turned her head a little to see him better. He had his arms on the counter around his plate, and he was hunched, shoving food into his mouth. She smiled, and let her shoulders drop.

They weren't even done eating when he asked, "Is sex the nex't step?"

She coughed as she tried to swallow, then said, "You're moving too fast."

"Arr all ooman cour'tings so slow?"

"I don't really know...I was raised by humans that weren't my biological parents, on Yaut. It was sort of a simulation, a lab setting. Yautja interaction was pleasant, but kept at a minimum."

He turned to her, and stood from his seat. His tongue lashed across his severed mandible, cleaning off a bead of sauce as he stared down at her. Amara slowly set down her utensil, her breaths becoming shallow. She didn't understand what she'd said to make him get so intense again. She leaned away from him, almost falling out of her seat, as he pressed closer.

"Yuu wern't even born on Earth, and yet yuu'd make me suf'fer the customs?"

She had to remind herself not to be so afraid of him. Amara still couldn't meet his eyes, but she said a firm, "Yes."

He rumbled, and Amara waited for it to turn into a purr, but then he leaned away, "So what is nex't step?"

"We go on dates, get used to each other, spend time together."

He grunted, "We hav spent time to-gether."

"Yea, but that doesn't count. You locked me in a cell, hit me in the head with a combi stick, made me clean and cook and shovel pig shit. You got me humped by a bird, and had me scared to death when that yautja grabbed me...You're in the the negative."

He cocked his head at her, "There are po'ints in-volved?"

"Well I wasn't really keeping count, but yea, I guess there is."

"And I'm in the negative?"

"Mmm, well, you did save my life. I'd say you're even now. I'll forget about you trying to drown me, rape me, and putting me in the trunk...and we can restart."

He let out a growl, "To accuse me of rape offends my honor! By my customs, yuu were willing!"

Amara quickly slid out of her seat to get away from him, "The only reason I would have come across as willing was because I was afraid you'd hurt me."

He calmed some, but tapped his claws on the plate, "Arr you afraid I'll hurt you if you don't allow me to court you?"

"...I'm afraid you'll sell me if I don't go along with it."

He stood up from his seat then, "Yuu are not worth the fru'stra'tion of courting! And now that my live-stock is de'pleted, you will wor-k until yuu collapse to re-pay the debt-yuu will not be sol'd!"

He snatched away her plate and began eating what she had left on it. Amara couldn't believe him. She stood there for a second, feeling frustrated, then stormed off. She wanted to do something bold-lay in his bed, yell at him, or run away. However, she settled down, not brave enough to do anything so stupid.

Really, she should have been relieved. He wasn't going to sell her, and he wasn't going to try and sleep with her anymore. Amara went to the medical room and picked up the empty container of healing cream. She wrote it on the list of things to buy. After her usual chores then, she headed to her cell.

She slouched as she climbed the stairs, ready for sleep. When she reached the top though, the door wouldn't slide open. She groaned and rested her head on the metal door. He'd said that she would have to work until she collapsed. She descended the stairs, deciding to go plead with him.

She found him outside, cleaning up her mistake. He'd already cleared the other pen of fruit, and had moved the leftover pigs into the new pen. Even with his injuries, he lifted up the animal carcasses and carried them away. She couldn't lift the dead animals, so she grabbed a bag and started picking up squishy, rotting fruit. He didn't look at her, and she didn't talk to him.

When everything was cleaned up, she washed her hands under the spigot and followed him inside. When she went to her cell though, it was locked. She tried the guest bedroom that she'd slept in once, but it was locked as well. She went looking for him again, and found him in the hallway. Before she could even speak, he brushed past her, ignoring her completely.

She bowed her head and followed after him, "Am I allowed to sleep?"

He didn't stop or turn to look at her, "Yes."

"The upstairs cell was locked...Where am I permitted to sleep?"

"In my bedroom or the dungeon only. If I find yuu sleeping elsewhere, I will hurt yuu."

Amara came to a halt, her throat feeling tight. She watched him disappear into the dark shadows of the hallway without another word. A rising defiance inside her was determined that wouldn't go to his bed. She crept down into the basement, trying to ignore the claw marks on the floor, the blood stains, and the cells that had bones in them. Besides the droning sound of dripping water, there was the distant sound of rattling chains.

She pushed open one of the metal doors, thankful that it didn't give an eerie creaking noise. There wasn't even a pelt to sleep on. She sat down in a corner, pressing her back against the walls. The lights were brighter, but that just allowed her to see the movements in the shadows. Every so often, her eyes caught a fleeting glance of little legs, or antennas. It was either suffer the crawly bugs, or a creepy yautja.


	17. Chapter 17

Since yautjas days were almost twice as long as Earth's, she had to take a nap at some point or sleep in the middle of the day. If she slept in his bed, that would mean that she'd only have to sleep next to him every other time she slept. It was like only being next to him every other day. Amara was sure that she could bear that. The dungeon though, she couldn't stand.

It would just be her luck though that it was the end of the yautja day, and he was in his bedroom when she opened the door. He didn't look at her, but she still timidly crawled over to the bed. The mattress was soft, and the furs were thick and silky. She laid her head on her arm, trying to ignore the fact that the bed smelled like him, and closed her eyes. She waited for him to touch her, willing herself not to be afraid.

"Clo'thes off."

When she opened her eyes, she almost had a heart attack. He was standing a few feet away from her, but he was utterly naked. She rolled away, her heart ramming against her ribcage, but began to remove her clothes. She slid them off the bed, then wrapped a fur around her body. He snatched the fur from her, and smoothed it back out on the bed.

"Mine." He rumbled, patting the white and red fur.

She rolled back the other way, curling herself up near the edge, "Fine."

He jabbed her with a knuckle, and when she didn't budge, he nudged her with his elbow, "My side."

She sighed, and scooted to the other side of the bed. He was so particular. The bed tipped with his weight, and he quickly settled to sleep. She tapped her fingers on the bed restlessly; just his very presence so close to her in the dark was unnerving. When her eyes finally started to close, he began to snore.

It was loud and obnoxious, so she yanked on one of the furs under him to wake him up, "Are you snoring just to torture me?"

" _M-di_." He grunted.

"I've never heard a yautja snore, ever."

"In'jury. Scar tissue inside...can't purr, and now I snore."

"Oh." She felt sorta bad that she'd brought it up.

She was just starting to fall asleep again when he shifted in the bed. She turned to face him, making sure he wasn't planning any funny business. The grey yautja had his back to her though, the deep lacerations in his back still visible in the dark. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes, relaxing some. Then, she felt him move again.

Every time she was about to fall asleep, he shifted. His back was steadily getting closer, and she was being pushed off the edge. In a few minutes, she'd likely be sleeping on the floor. He leaned back, and Amara had finally had it. She placed her hands on him and shoved with all her might.

He didn't budge of course, until he woke up and turned to face her. His mandibles twitched thoughtfully as he met her eyes. Before she could react, one of his meaty hands reached out and he squeezed her breast. Her breath caught, and her body went ridged. Amara was used to letting yautjas do whatever they wanted, afraid that she'd be punished if she didn't. This yautja was different from the rest though, and she didn't know whether or not to like him or hate him.

"Don't think that I don't know what you're doing."

He let out a high-pitched chirp, sounding rather like some sort of inquisitive bird.

"You make me touch you, make me give you consent to touch me back. I know a little bit about yautja culture, and I had to learn the whole female-touching thing the hard way."

She'd touched him first when he'd had her undress that day, then had grazed him when she'd turned around in the tub, and now he'd gotten her to shove him. He chuffed, like that wasn't his plan. However, his hand was still on her breast. He was being incredibly gentle for a yautja, but Amara swept her arm up, wedging it under his hand so he wouldn't be touching her private bits.

"Are you going to let me sleep now?"

She was the slightest bit disappointed to find that the was. The yautja flipped around, turning his back to her without voicing an answer to her question. So Amara turned her back to him too, and tried to sleep. Her mind just wouldn't stop though. She'd never slept in a yautjas bed before, and she didn't know what to think of it.

She was sure that he didn't let her get eight hours of sleep before he was nudging her in the morning. She rolled out of bed, dressed, and headed for the bathroom. She yawned as she sat down on the toilet. Yautjas had little sense of privacy though, and he came in to check on her. She furrowed her brows and tried to cover herself.

"Bait, hur'ry up."

She was getting too comfortable talking back to him, "I have a name."

"Bait."

"A real name I mean."

"Hur'ry, Bait."

She sighed, "You're making me nervous. Can you wait outside?"

He stepped closer, "Ner'vous?"

"I'm trying to... **go** , you know, and you're making it difficult. Don't stare at me, just turn around, please."

He stormed up to her and punched his fists into the wall beside her head, "I will not have a _pyode amedha_ tell me what to do!"

Her blood was rushing through her veins, "I said please."

His mangled face hovered in front of her, without any intention of leaving, so she didn't have a choice but to finish her business in front of him. It was the most awkward several minutes of her life. Then, after she washed up, he drug her to the *kehrite*. The yautja scanned the wall of weapons, and chose a pair of hook swords. They could be wielded separately, or hooked together to be used like a double-ended spear.

"Pik a we'apon and we will spar."


	18. Chapter 18

She looked to the wall of weapons, her stomach twisting in knots. Though he could easily avoid her attacks, she picked the most harmless weapon she could find. It was a small stone club. He grunted, probably disagreeing with her decision, but got into a fighting stance. She gripped the handle of the weapon tighter, feeling sweat collecting in her palm.

When he attacked, she scrunched her eyes shut and felt the pole of his weapon hit her chest. It knocked the wind out of her, and made her stumble back a few feet. She clumsily lifted the club up as he attacked again, and he disconnected the swords to smack her with the blunt hook end of both them. He hit her in her ass, and jabbed her in the stomach as she just stood there. The blows stung, but she didn't think they'd bruise.

He attacked again and again, using her like a live target, but only barely let the metal touch her skin. He moved around her, impressively flashing the sharp blades just inches in front of her face. They could have easily sliced into her flesh. She worried that if his injured leg failed him, that she was going to get hurt. He prodded her, trying to get her to move, to be more of a challenge but she wouldn't budge.

Eventually, he put away his weapon and said, "Fi'ght!"

She felt only slightly better without him wielding the hook-swords. Even unarmed, he was still lethal. She hesitantly lifted the stone club, reluctant to actually use it on him. Fighting and hunting were never her thing, and so she found yautjas to be obnoxious and vulgar. She backed away as he came at her.

The first thing he did was a sweeping hip throw. While facing her, he firmly grabbed her left shoulder and her right arm so she couldn't slip away. Then, he quickly spun around, bumping his hip against her. Before she could even tense up her body, he swept one of his leg in front of hers as he threw her forward. Her body rolled in the air and she landed hard on her back.

She groaned as lifted herself to her feet, then muttered, "Show off."

He wasn't done showing off either. He did the same takedown, but this time, he kept a hold of her arm. When went face-first for the ground, he kept her from hitting. Before she could even regain her balance, one arm went around her neck, the other went under one of her arms, and he turned his back to her. The yautja lifted her up as he bent his knees, flinging her over his shoulder.

She cried out, afraid to hit the stone floor, but he kept a hold of her, preventing it. He was playing with her now, going through advanced fight moves and manipulating her like a rag doll. Yet, he didn't harm her at all. He spun her, threw her, dipped her, lifted her into the air, and it was almost like dancing. She'd never experienced anything quite like it.

When he finally took his hands off her and stepped away, she was left breathless and a bit dizzy. Amara knew that sparring could be considered foreplay with yautjas, and she had just viewed that as more savagery before. Now though, after being manhandled, and seeing those muscles at work, she could see how it could be a turn-on for them. He had been rough with her, and yet incredibly gentle. Amara hadn't thought it was possible for a yautja.

He let out a low rumble, and she realized that she was just standing there, staring at him. Assuming that sparring was over, she went and put back the club she'd grabbed, thankful that he hadn't really made her use it. The yautja started putting on the black mesh though, and his wrist blades. He grabbed the combi stick and some gun-looking weapon as well. He didn't put on his armor though, like he usually did when they went hunting.

" _Ye_." Come.

He led her out of the house, but not to the back where the ship was. Her pace slowed as they passed the animal pens and the field, thinking that he was going to put her back to work. Instead, he just kept walking. They walked into the peach-colored grass that rose alive her head. It looked soft and fluffy, but was actually itchy and sorta sticky.

" _Ak-a-tae_."

She quieted her footsteps and her breathing. She'd come to realize that they were on a hunt for her breakfast, and she didn't want to scare anything away. She stayed directly behind him, otherwise she'd lose him in the tall grass. He handed her the netgun. Then, he grabbed her arm and hauled her in front of him.

He crouched as his fingers swept away the blades of grass, "Yuu kill."

She stared at the small black and grey deer as it flicked around its long, flowing tail. Amara didn't like to kill things. She ate meat, as she was sort of chubby and had a weakness for food, but she didn't want to personally kill her next meal. That was a yautjas job. She couldn't even kill creepy insects.

"I'd rather have some veggies right now." She gently handed back the gun, just waiting for him to explode with anger.

Instead, he cocked his head at her. She stared at his face, finding his features slightly less hideous than before. Amara still avoided looking in his eyes for too long, afraid to invoke some sort of challenge, but his eyes were stunning. It was like looking into a lions eyes, seeing that inner hunger behind a regal appearance. His eyes were much more piercing than a lion's though.

They were rimmed in black, making the bright gold coloration appear even more bold. She turned away before she could get lost in thoughts of him. She heard the deer quickly flee through the grass, having heard or seen her movements. The yautja snorted like a horse, indicating his disgust. She wanted to eat something other than meat, and she'd scared prey away. When he started walking away, she followed, hoping that he wasn't taking her straight home.


	19. Chapter 19

He started teaching her what was edible on the planet, and what wasn't. The fruits and berries she picked up along the way were eaten immediately. The vegetables, she rolled up in the edge of her shirt to carry back to the house and cook. He even mentioned which plants were most likely to taste good or bad to her. Amara was hopeful that one day she'd be able to wander out of the house and pick her own food-she'd never had that sort of freedom.

He pointed up at a tree, "Fruit ed'ible, tart. Leaves ar poi'son."

She stared up at the tiny yellow fruits, then to the ground. She'd never tried to climb a tree. Amara searched the area for any fallen fruit, but all she could find was bits of chewed pieces. Animals had quickly eaten whatever had fallen. She sized up the tree, trying to picture what branches she'd be able to climb up to, but then decided against it.

She turned to the yautja, "You're so good at climbing. I bet you could get one of those fruits in a second."

She noticed that he subtlety puffed up his chest at hearing her compliment.

"With human courtings, the males are supposed to bring the females gifts...flowers, chocolates...fruits."

His head lifted up to survey the branches.

"Do you think you could maybe climb up and get me one of those fruits?"

He stepped in front of her, and she could finally feel some heat coming off his skin, "I cou'd."

"So you'll climb up there for me?"

" _M-di_."

She crossed her arms in front of her chest, trying not to pout. She couldn't believe he'd said no. He definitely wasn't the romantic sort. Amara was determined to go and get the fruit herself. She laid down the vegetables she'd collected, then walked up to the tree.

She hesitated, "Will...will you catch me if I fall?"

" _M-di_."

"No? Why not?"

"If yuu fall from highest branch, yuu won't die."

"It will hurt!"

"Pane is mo-ti'vation not to fall, to do better."

She had plenty of food, but the drive to accomplish something on her own, and to show him that she didn't need him made her want to do it. Amara tested her grip and some footholds, searching for an easy path up. She tried a few different methods-jumping and hugging herself against the trunk, or trying to do a pull up on one of the low branches. She couldn't even get up there. If she could just get up in one if the branches, then the rest would be easy.

"Can you lift me up, or do I have to do this all on my own?"

He grabbed her hips and easily lifted her up until she could sit on one of the branches. Amara wobbled, but stood, then began to climb. She was overly cautious, keeping both hands on other branches and stepped tentatively. She kept expecting a branch to give out on her. She grabbed one of the yellow fruits, then sat up in the tree and she it.

She considered throwing the core down at his head, but knew she'd regret it. She tossed it behind her, then began to make her way down. Going up was easy compared to going down. The ground looked so much farther away than it should have been. She took one wrong step and fell, and she wasn't able to maintain her grip on the branch.

Amara landed faster than she'd expected, and it took her brain a moment to realize that she was in the yautjas arms. Bits of leaves and small twigs floated down around them. His arms were immensely muscular, and so it still wasn't a very soft landing. She felt a bit sore where her body had hit his arms. Still, she lifted her head and beamed at him.

"You caught me...and you said that you wouldn't."

He made an odd gurgling noise, then his arms dropped out from under her. She hit the ground, and pain shot through her hip. Her jaw dropped as she stared back up at him. He'd caught her, just to dump her in the ground at his feet. She couldn't believe it.

"Why did you do that?"

He grunted, and turned his back to her.

She grit her teeth, feeling angry at him, until she looked back up in the tree. At the least, she should have sprained her ankle and been made to limp home. From a fall that high, she could have broken an arm and leg. She sighed as she stood to her feet.

"Thanks for catching me." She picked up her vegetables from the ground.

He growled at her comment.

She officially didn't understand yautjas, so she started probing, "Are you under some oath not to let me get hurt? Was that in the contract when I was sold to you?"

" _M-di_ , were not sold-was gi-ven. No con'tract."

"He gave me away to you, free? Without a contract?" She felt lightheaded thinking that she'd overestimated her worth to them.

" _Se-i_."

She started walking in the direction towards the house, and he quickly got in front of her to lead her back. Since she'd been born on the yautja home planet, she'd always been sold with a contract which stated under their honour that she would not be killed. She supposed that since she'd been given away, there was a loophole to that mandatory contract. That meant that she could be killed off whenever he chose it. Her eyes stared at his back, wanting to feel more frightened of him now-but she wasn't.

"You do like me then."

He abruptly stopped and glanced back at her with a low growl, "I don't like oomans."

Her stomach felt warm and fuzzy just from teasing him, "But you like me. Why else would you catch me?"

He kept silent, completely dismissing her question, and continued walking. He liked her, but to what extent she didn't know. If he was ever starving to death, he'd probably butcher her and pick his teeth with her bones without remorse. Still, he acted differently than all her other owners, and she was starting to think that it wasn't about mating.


	20. Chapter 20

The last yautja that had liked her was adamant about her surveying his collection of skulls. That's just what yautjas did to court a mate. Getk'ka didn't have any skulls on display in the halls, meaning that he wasn't trying to be flashy or proud. After the debauched clan hunt, she could understand that. Still, he had to have a closet full of trophies hiding somewhere.

She cleaned and organized the house. After finding mostly locked doors, she finally asked him, "Where do you keep your skulls?"

"They ar hi'den."

She watched him chose a fur from the pile. The natural oils from the pelts had stained the wooden table they were on. He spread the tan and orange fur out on his work bench, and began to make cuts. Amara shuffled closer to watch him. She jumped when he turned and grabbed her waist, but he was just taking measurements.

She let him concentrate on his work for a moment, but then couldn't resist, "Can I see them?"

" _M-di_."

"Why not?"

"Wor'king." He growled.

She waited patiently as he fashioned the pelt into a loincloth for her. He measured, re-measured, cut carefully, and sewed it. Amara leaned closer, making sure to pay attention in case he decided to have her make her own clothes next time. He removed the fur off of the scraps, then cut them into long, thin strips. He braided the strips together to make a strong chord that would keep the loincloth tied on.

"When your done, will you show me the skulls? I'm just curious."

He didn't answer, only kept working. He even dyed the leather darker. When it was finished, it looked like it had been made by a professional. As he examined the final product, she reached out to touch it. He jerked it away from her with a snarl.

His body was tense, his veins bulging. Her eyes grew wide and she backed away as he suddenly began to to tear it into pieces. The room pulsed with a dark growl, and he angrily discarded the remnants of the loincloth. With as angry as he was so suddenly, she worried that he'd tear her to pieces next.

He turned to her, and she quickly bowed her head, "I'm sorry for pestering you...I'll get back to cleaning."

"Not mad at yuu...The loincloth was not e'ven."

Her eyebrows shot up, surprised, and she risked a fleeting glance up at him. He seemed calm already, but now she knew better. He was seriously OCD and ready to explode with rage at any second. The yautja grabbed another fur from the pile, and say down at the workbench. He started all over again, and Amara began to scoot towards the door.

" _Ye chut_." Come here.

She moved to stand beside him.

"Wiy does the a-ir smell like fear with yuu a'round?"

"You just exploded because a loincloth apparently wasn't straight. It looked straight to me."

"Yautjas arr controlled. They only destroy what they want to, ev'en when angry. I didn't hurt yuu. Wiy do yuu fear me still?" He grabbed a hold of the knife he'd been using, making her feel more nervous.

"Other yautjas don't have the same control over their tempers...or they just wanted to hurt me...If sewing clothes makes you frustrated, I'd rather not be around it."

"I don't like your fear...When I smell your fear, I want to kill you. Only prey should fear."

If he was trying to calm her, it wasn't working. Her heart was rapidly accelerating, and she started to back away from him again.

"Do not run, or Iy will cha'se." He warned.

She nodded, and slowly walked towards the door. She wanted to run, but she didn't dare. Who the hell says something creepy like that? In the hallway though, she finally paused. He'd proven plenty of times that he was capable of curbing his anger and not harming her.

If he ever did hurt her though, she'd never trust him again. Amara stepped forward, back into the room, to watch him work. He turned, his dreds sliding off his shoulder as he eyed her. She walked back to his side, her heart still thumping loudly. He let out a deep rumble, then continued to work on the leather.

When he was done, she started to leave, but he stopped her, "Still wa'nt to see the _Th'syrai_?"

"The skulls? Yea."

He stood up, headed out the door, and she hurried to follow. She stayed on his heels as he led her through the dark hallways. The house was like a stepped pyramid, but so far she'd really only seen the main floor and the basement. Her cell was upstairs, but there was more to the attic then just that. They ascended a spiral staircase, and engravings like hieroglyphs began to make an appearance on the walls.

The lights weren't any darker, but the glowing ceiling panels were spaced farther apart. She kept close to him, her eyes straining in the dark. Amara had gotten used to the main floor, and all its shadows. But now, she felt insecure again, lost in a maze of hallways with a grey skinned yautja to lead the way. It reminded her of the first day she'd arrived at the house, except somehow, the yautjas presence was comforting now.

She wasn't sure when her opinion of him had switched from creepy to mysterious, from ugly to interesting, but it had. He was disfigured and limped slightly, but he still had immense power in those muscles. And when she wasn't afraid of them, his muscles, his body, had her mind thinking dirty thoughts. His head turned to glance behind at her, as though he could sense her thoughts. Amara quickly averted her eyes.

He slid open an ornately carved door, and allowed her to step inside the room. After a moment, the dim orange glow from the brightened to a more natural white lighting. It looked like old catacombs, with articulated skeletons and skulls stacked upon one another. He had a fondness for human skulls, as he had more than two dozen of them. The rest of the skulls were impressive as well, each different and interesting.


	21. Chapter 21

Ch21

She surveyed the skulls, actually feeling impressed with his collection. He must have been a great hunter before the clan hunting incident. She ran her hand over one of the skulls, her fingers coming back with dust. It was a shame that he hid them. Amara turned around to ask him what exactly had happened on that hunt, but the yautja wasn't there.

Her heart fell. Now that she was doing everything right, he didn't seem interested in her. He should have been hovering over her, growling when she touched his skulls, but purring when she admired them. She'd pushed him away before and now he was getting back at her perhaps. She didn't know what she was doing, provoking him anyhow.

She liked the human skulls best, besides the one that looked like a dragon. She knew they were her own kind, but it really didn't disturb her that she'd killed them. Amara decided to surprise him, and dust all the skulls that she could reach. She was super careful as she moved and cleaned them. Hoping that he wouldn't get mad, she even rearranged a few so it looked more aesthetically pleasing, to her at least.

She felt her way through the dark halls, bumbling around until she found the stairs. She went to the kitchen next, hopeful that while she'd been busy dusting that he'd gone out and killed something for her dinner. The kitchen was clean and empty though. Thinking that he was still out hunting, she sat down at the counter to wait. A loud, airy clicking erupted in the stillness, and gave her chills.

She turned to look in the hallway, where a large shadow spoke up, "I did not give you permission to move my trophies."

She swallowed thickly, "It was a surprise."

He shuffled closer, and she could see that his mandibles were spread menacingly, "I don't like surprises."

"I was careful. They're all clean and look nice now."

He growled, and as soon as he moved, she took off. He'd warned her before not to run, but she had just reacted. She fled down the hallways, and almost collided with a wall in the dark. Around one corner, she stopped, surrendering. She pressed her back against the wall a second later as he turned the corner.

Her chest was heaving, but he didn't seem the least bit fatigued, "I'm sorry! I won't touch them ever again."

He hunched down until his teeth grazed her shoulder. She was so afraid. As soon as he went to bite down, she just reacted. Amara scrunched her eyes as she punched him as hard as she could in the face. He seized her hips then, but she wasn't done fighting.

She screamed, shoved at him, and even tried to kick him. He wasn't fazed. The yautja hauled her up over his shoulder and carried her off. Amara quickly stilled, knowing that she had lost. The doors and hallways passed in a blur, until they reached his bedroom door.

The yautja carried her in and tossed her down onto the bed. Then, he began undressing in front of her. Amara sat up, her heart thundering in her chest from fear as well as exhilaration. He swept the fur stole off his broad shoulders, then slipped off the wrist gauntlet. His claws slid down to his loincloth and untied it.

He was so very alien, and yet her mind wasn't registering it. The grey skin, the missing tusk, the scars-they shouldn't have been such a turn-on but they were. The muscles, gold eyes, and huge slong were a bonus. Amara was obviously checking him out, but for some reason, he didn't like it. He jerked forward with a growl, getting her to look away.

He jerked her skirt down, then threw it over the edge of the bed. She stared at the wall as he crawled onto the bed over her legs. His bare chest pressed against her cheek, forcing her lie back down. His body was warm against her. She wanted him; she just hoped that after making him mad, he'd be somewhat gentle.

He reached down, his claws grabbing her legs to bring them around his waist. Then he rumbled, "Not pun'ishment."

Amara lit up, "Your not mad at me for rearranging your skulls?"

"*M-di*."

"You seemed mad."

His hand slid up to her neck, keeping her pinned, "*M-di*."

His actions and his words seemed contradictory-but that's just how yautjas were. Amara decided to try and relax and let him do what he wanted. Her body craved the carnal act, yet she didn't think she'd seriously end up enjoying it. Yautjas were rough, and could last too long. Those sounded like positive things, but in reality, it was just too much for her.

He pressed his erection against her, but said, "I'll on'ly go as far as yuu let me."

Getk'ka was sweet in his own way. Reminding her that he wasn't taking her by force was sweet by yautja standards. She smiled, knowing that she'd always made him stop before. This time, she wanted him to go all the way. Without a complaint from her, he began to push himself inside her opening.

There was no foreplay. That was one reason Amara found yautjas too rough. A yautja female was always ready for sex, while a human female needed a few minutes for her cervix to elevate and make room for penetration. Amara's eyes rolled back as his cock invaded her, and her body was forced to accommodate his girth. It actually didn't feel as bad as she remembered it from before.

Her legs wrapped around his hips and her arms went around his neck. She moaned with the pleasure as well as the pain. His pace was quickly growing faster and more demanding. Amara couldn't help but think that this was what hips were for-not for walking or running-but for thrusting. He was undulating his abs and tipping his hips as he fucked her. It was gentle, and yet forceful.

Her eyes flew open as his teeth bit down on her shoulder. She held him tighter as the pain fired through her nerves and pleasure bloomed in her body. He growled and grunted on top of her. As he urged faster and deeper, bucked back and forth under him, moaning at every vigorous thrust.


	22. Chapter 22

He didn't stay in bed with her afterwards, but she hadn't expected him to. It would have been a bit awkward anyway, spooning with an a seven-foot, grey-skinned reptilian alien. She was a bit sore, so she stayed in his bed and started to drift asleep. Her thoughts were on him as she wrapped herself in the furs. She could get used to this.

She could go out in the mornings and gather her own food. Sex with Getk'ka had proven to be more than satisfying. Sitting on his lap for hunts wasn't the worst thing in the world. He didn't beat or abuse her. Amara hoped that he would keep her forever, and not sell her like all the others. She liked him more then her other owners.

Every Time in the past though, when she was starting to like her new home, something always happened to ruin it. This time was no exception. A few weeks later, the yautja grabbed her arm to haul her out of bed in the morning. She blinked up at him sleepily and yawned as he drug her forward. Rude wake-up calls weren't all that unusual for him.

Who she saw in the hall though, was unusual. She had never seen any of her previous owners again after she'd been sold. However, he stood in the hall with his eyes on her, looking just like he had before the hunt. He'd sold her because he hadn't been sure he'd survive the long and dangerous hunt. She wasn't exactly relieved that he had.

" _Come servant, we have a long ride home._ "

Normally, Amara would he'd obeyed, but her heart clung the idea of living a freer life on the farm.

Her previous owner let out a hiss and stomped forward, " _I said come here!_ "

Amara tried to hide behind Getk'ka, but he caught her arm and started pushing her forward.

" _I see that you've already let her revert into a misbehaved little brat_."

Getk'ka's grip tightened on her arm as he let out a rich, thundering growl. Her previous owner, Amasis, answered with a growl as well. Amasis's mandibles twitched, wanting to flare. She didn't want them to fight over her-watching challenges always freaked her out, and she was afraid Amasis would win. She didn't want to leave though either.

"Getk'ka is my new owner. Why are you here?"

" _You know better than to speak to me in English! I arranged for this to be your new home unless I returned from the hunt. I killed a beast most said someone of my rank couldn't. Now stop cowering and get over here!_ "

She fought back tears. She didn't believe it. No one had said that this was a temporary arrangement. "I want to stay." Amara begged.

Getk'ka finally spoke up, "Yuu have to gow. On my honor, I agreed that if yuu were still al'ive and in my cus-tody that I'd give yuu back."

"Please, I'll do anything. I'll cook your every meal, give you massages, and anything else you want. Don't you want me here? Let me stay."

"I can't." Getk'ka shoved her forward.

"Please, I like you...even with your missing tusk, weak leg, and angry outbursts. We don't have to be lifemates or anything serious...but I want to be with you."

" _Remember that oomans are selfish and manipulative_." Amasis said tensely.

" _I return her to your hands, as promised_."

Her heart fell. Amasis firmly grabbed her by the hair, and began dragging her through the halls. She stopped struggling, knowing that she'd lost and that it would only gain her punishment. She would miss the black and grey deer in the tall grass. She'd miss having the freedom to wander around the house. Getk'ka would turn into nothing but a memory.

As soon as the front door was in view, that deep scratchy voice spoke up, " _I challenge you for the right to keep pyode amedha_."

Amasis swiveled around with a low growl, " _Retract your challenge brother, you know it is a mistake. I've been hunting and sparring in these last years while you've stayed cooped up on this farm._ "

She could tell that he was trying his best not to limp as he strolled up to Amasis. With mandibles flared in blatant aggression, he roughly shoved the other yautjas shoulder, physically initiating a challenge now.

" _Just because no yautja female will have you, doesn't mean that you genre to settle for a chubby ooman."_

Getk'ka's peircing gold eyes met hers, "I'm not set'tling."

Amara's cheeks blushed with color as she smiled.

" _As you wish_." He released her, and split a second later he attacked Getk'ka.

He'd said that they were brothers, but Amasis looked very different from Getk'ka, making her think that while they shared the same mother, they had different fathers. His skin was dark green and very botched with black, while Getk'ka's skin was a pale grey with very little blotching. Amasis had yellow eyes, and Getk'ka's were like molten gold. Amasis was younger, thinner, and even a little shorter then the other yautja-but he knew Getk'ka's weakness.

He tried to throw Getk'ka off balance, making him strain on his weakened leg. He threw punches at his mouth, always hitting the spot were he was missing a tusk. It was an unprotected area without a sharp tusk to damage his opponents hand. However, Getk'ka seemed to know Amasis's fighting style, as though they had sparred together often. Though Getk'ka had a disability, he made Amasis seem like his sloppy little brother.

The fight was over father then she could have imagined. Getk'ka lifted up Amasis and threw him up against the wall with a dark snarl. Amasis was battered and bleeding, and he turned his face away with an indignant huff. He'd surrendered. Amara could hardly believe it.

When Getk'ka turned to her, his chest heaving from exertion, all she could think to say was, "Damn."

He grunted, "Chall'enges used to give me an out-let for my an'ger. I haven't had chal'lenge for many cycles, until now."

She couldn't stop the broad smile that spread to her lips, "Mmm, so you had a lot of pent up aggression huh?"

" _Se-i_."

As Amara watched Amasis leave, Getk'ka slowly crept up behind her. She could feel the heat radiating from his skin and seeping into her back. He had won his prize and now wanted to use it. She definitely liked that idea. Amara had a hunch that she was going to like this life.

She only had one request, "Purr for me."

~O fim~ (Portuguese for "the end")

;)


End file.
